Chapter 187 - Episode 25. Deus Ex Machina (2)
Chapter 187: Episode 25. Deus Ex Machina (2)
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The gods’ weapons clashed, and the auction house became a complete mess in an instant.
Raynald, the auctioneer, and the staff rushed onto the stage to form a barrier, but their opponents were the supreme-grade gods of the 《Abyss》.
“Aaaagh!”
The auctioneer’s emergency barrier covered the stage, but it could not withstand attacks of this scale.
Above all, three of the Seven Divine Thrones were here.
“Contact the World Force Suppression Bureau! Hurry!”
The auctioneer shouted despite already knowing the answer. A battle had broken out where the strongest gods of the 《Abyss》 had gathered. The Bureau’s employees had likely already fainted, unable to withstand the shockwaves.
[Kill them.]
At Chronos’s command, the Clockmakers who had stormed the auction house clashed with the high-grade gods. Fierce sparks flew from their Parts.
Some gods still tried to reach for the Three Divine Artifacts, but most had their hands cut off by attacks from the Eight Heavens or Seven Stars.
“Gaaah!”
A man watched the chaos from the auction house’s second floor.
Karavan, Ignis’s Vicegerent, kept exclaiming in admiration as black blades surged wildly below.
“Ignis-nim, this is even more incredible than you said.”
[I told you.]
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Every time Jaehwan’s sword strikes exploded, fragments of the ruined stage flew into the air. Followers of high-grade gods were shredded like moths amid the rays of Stab.
Still, that was not enough to justify the name Heaven’s End.
Then a black sword formed from ominous World Force appeared in Jaehwan’s left hand. He laid the black sword over Solitary Existence.
Karavan murmured in admiration.
“So that is the Setting called 「Fall」. It feels strange seeing it in person after only watching it on screen.”
[Looks like he changed swords.]
“When did you even notice that?”
[It is a basic requirement for any fan.]
The light of 「Fall」 wrapped around Jaehwan’s Solitary Existence and stained the air. The enhancement-type Settings of the approaching high-grade gods shattered one after another.
“W-What is this...?”
“Watch out. If you touch his Setting...”
The startled high-grade gods shouted.
Watching the scene, Ignis murmured in surprise.
[As expected, it is a 「Setting」 that destroys 「Settings」 themselves.]
“Isn’t he just crushing them with World Force?”
[No. He is controlling his World Force to an extreme degree right now. There is no other way to explain it unless that Setting itself has such power. Watch carefully.]
The Vicegerents Jaehwan struck a few times rapidly lost World Force, then went limp and collapsed like Dolls whose links had been severed.
Karavan asked suspiciously, “What type is it? It seems to ignore compatibility.”
[It is dual-type.]
“There was another dual-type Setting besides our Crimson Flame Tribulation?”
[The Black Flame Dragon used by that Dragon God bastard is also a dual-type Setting.]
“Ah, right. That is true.”
[It seems to use an enhancement-type Setting as its base, then combine it with a law-type Setting that destroys the opponent’s 「Setting」... Hmm. How did he even make that?]
While they talked about such petty matters, half the Vicegerents who had charged in as the advance force had already been cut down by Jaehwan.
By then, even the gods were beginning to panic. Karavan was no different.
“Doesn’t it look like the god he just hit suffered soul extinction?”
[It does.]
In principle, killing a high-grade god in the 《Abyss》 was nearly impossible. As long as even a single Follower remained, a god could not truly disappear.
Even killing every Follower did not immediately destroy the god. There was a short grace period.
In other words, as long as a god gained new Followers quickly enough, that god could live forever.
“I heard there was a god he caused to suffer soul extinction in the 〈Metaverse〉. It might be true.”
Of course, there were ways to kill a god.
The Seven Divine Thrones and the Awakened Ones of the 「Rupture」 also knew methods to cause a god’s soul extinction. Yet even they did not use those methods to carry out indiscriminate slaughter. Usually, they stopped after killing the Vicegerent or wiping out the Followers.
Otherwise, they would be condemned by the other gods of the 《Abyss》.
But Jaehwan did not seem to care about such unspoken rules. As far as Karavan knew, there had only been two gods in the 《Abyss》 who acted as though no one else mattered.
Big Brother, the System’s guardian.
And Catastrophe, the slayer of gods.
There were unusual cases like the Awakened Ones of the 「Rupture」 and the God of the Deep Sea Russell, but all of them had the protection of a particular faction. At least they had someone powerful behind them before doing something insane.
Jaehwan did not.
“Should we step in if things get worse? At this rate, that bastard will become a public enemy of the Abyss. And if he really has twenty billion trust, this will become a serious problem. If the other Eight Heavens or Divine Thrones steal the trust and convert it into World Force... Why are you laughing, Ignis-nim?”
[Do you really think he has that much trust?]
“Huh? Then what?”
[If that bastard actually had twenty billion trust, he would have swallowed it all, smashed the auction house, and taken the Three Divine Artifacts.]
Come to think of it, that made sense. Anyone with twenty billion World Force could simply raid the auction house and seize the Three Divine Artifacts. There was no need to go through all this trouble.
[Someone clearly arranged this whole scene. They deliberately caused this incident to coincide with the trust payment.]
“Who arranged it?”
[You will find out soon enough. They will reveal themselves near the Three Divine Artifacts soon.]
“Ah, I see. That bastard must be trying to steal Deus Ex Machina, right?”
[Hm?]
“Isn’t that obvious? The reason they caused all this trouble must be because of those Three Divine Artifacts!”
[Well, that could be true, but unless they are an idiot, Deus Ex Machina will not be their goal.]
“What do you mean?”
Ignis asked in a disappointed voice.
[You still have not noticed?]
“Huh? Noticed what?”
At Karavan’s confused reply, Ignis continued in a contemptuous tone.
[What Deus Ex Machina? It is obviously fake, you idiot.]
* * *
Fake.
The moment Jaehwan saw Deus Ex Machina up close, he realized it.
He had not been certain when he saw it from afar, but now there was no doubt. It was a well-made Part, but it was definitely not one of the Three Divine Artifacts.
“He is after the Three Divine Artifacts!”
Seizing the brief opening, the high-grade gods targeted Jaehwan.
Clang!
Jaehwan knocked away the incoming blades and frowned. He could not understand why he was going through all this trouble over a fake Three Divine Artifact.
No. Perhaps it was not because of the Three Divine Artifacts.
Jaehwan thought of Maiad’s check in his pocket. Perhaps Maiad had foreseen this scene from the moment they brought him along.
“Hand over the trust.”
The one who charged at him with such an obvious line was Turis, the God of Javelins and one of the Seven Stars. Summoning a translucent javelin in his right hand, Turis threw seven at Jaehwan at once.
「War God’s Javelin」
Turis’s Setting came into view through Jaehwan’s 「Doubt」. It was a typical enhancement-type Setting, but each strike held an abnormal amount of condensed World Force.
Jaehwan quickly took cover behind a display case. With sharp whistles, the case shattered and auction items flew through the air.
He grabbed a conspicuous pair of secret blades.
Blade Lord’s Secret Blades.
Jaehwan threw the secret blades at the charging gods. Wrapped in 「Fall」, they whirled through the air and created a storm of World Force.
Turis hurriedly retreated, but the high-grade gods who missed their chance to flee were caught in the storm.
“Gaaah!”
Before Jaehwan’s 「Fall」, which suddenly eroded their worlds, the gods had no time to prepare before they were destroyed.
‘At least high-grade gods’ Vicegerents will not be a problem.’
This was Jaehwan’s first battle after leaving the 〈Metaverse〉.
He needed a chance to assess his own combat ability. He had defeated the Leader, but that battle had taken place inside the 〈Metaverse〉.
After several exchanges, Jaehwan realized that 「Fall」 was stronger than it had been within the 〈Metaverse〉. The 〈Metaverse〉 had been the Driver’s world, so perhaps his Setting had been under a penalty until now.
“Do not touch that sword! If you do, your Setting will break!”
The problem was that he lost more World Force than when fighting in the 〈Metaverse〉. As his breathing grew heavier, his World Force drained faster.
“Join forces!”
As the Vicegerents of high-grade gods died one after another, the panicked gods began working together to pressure Jaehwan. Chronos’s Clockmakers also entered the battle, keeping Jaehwan’s hands even busier.
Feeling his World Force gradually decrease, Jaehwan began to sense danger.
Then someone spoke.
“Leave this place to us.”
Two men stepped forward, blocking the enemies as though they were protecting Jaehwan.
They were Old Heaven Shiyu and Death Heaven Thanatos.
The gods who had charged in recoiled in shock at the Eight Heavens’ sudden intervention.
Chronos’s cold voice echoed from afar.
[Shiyu. What are you doing?]
“We will not touch your Clockmakers, so do not worry.”
“Go, Heaven’s End. You are the winning bidder for that item.”
The Eight Heavens did not seem to realize Deus Ex Machina was fake yet. There was no time to explain.
Jaehwan gave a small nod and turned toward the back of the stage.
“Stop.”
A sharp javelin blocked his path. It belonged to Turis, but the problem was the thin layer of ice spreading across the floor around it.
Jaehwan released World Force to block the cold biting into his feet.
“Not bad.”
When he turned his head, Pao, the God of Sleet, targeted Jaehwan’s side with a frost-covered gauntlet. The two gods who had disliked Jaehwan since he entered the auction house had chosen to join forces.
Turis’s javelin targeted Jaehwan’s head, while Pao’s gauntlet aimed for his side.
Crash!
Someone blocked both the javelin and gauntlet at once.
The God of the Deep Sea Russell.
One of the Seven Stars who controlled the power of waves, and who had fought Jaehwan on the Eighth Floor of the 〈Metaverse〉.
Russell deflected the two Seven Stars’ attacks, then spoke without looking back at Jaehwan.
“I will repay my debt with this.”
Jaehwan had never expected Russell, of all people, to help him.
“Russell. Have you gone insane?”
Pao’s furious fist was blocked by Russell’s palm.
Turis sneered at Russell.
“Why are you helping the God Slayer? Did some bond form between fellow ‘God Slayers’?”
Russell knocked aside Turis’s rushing javelins.
“Get out. You have no chance of winning if you fight here.”
Jaehwan could not understand why Russell was helping him. Was Russell grateful that Jaehwan had spared his Vicegerent in the 〈Metaverse〉?
He examined the enemies Russell was facing.
Turis, the God of Javelins, and Pao, the God of Sleet.
Along with numerous high-grade gods.
Russell might somehow be able to protect himself against opponents of that level.
The problem was Dark Heaven, who had been sitting quietly at a table in the distance, now rising from his seat.
“I suppose it is time to catch the book thief.”
The air around Dark Heaven changed with every step he took.
Jaehwan had never faced an enemy at the level of the Eight Heavens, aside from the Leader and Old Heaven.
Still, there was one thing he knew without fighting Dark Heaven. If Jaehwan fled now, Russell would certainly die.
When Jaehwan still showed no sign of fleeing, Russell turned back in irritation.
“Why...”
“I will join forces with you this once.”
Jaehwan adjusted his grip on Solitary Existence’s hilt.
He still had more than half his World Force remaining. There was also a technique perfectly suited to this situation.
A technique ideal for sweeping away all the gods before him at once.
Perhaps realizing what Jaehwan intended to do, a strange light passed through Russell’s eyes.
“I understand.”
The moment their gazes met, Russell manifested his Sanctuary. Russell’s world, which had turned the Eighth Floor into a sea of blood, flooded outward.
Sanctuary Manifestation.
「Deep Sea」
Waves formed around Russell and began sweeping through the entire hall. Some unprepared high-grade gods were torn apart along with the waves, but Turis and Pao were different.
They manifested their own Sanctuaries to block the Deep Sea and prepared to counterattack.
Pao’s cold gathered around Turis’s straight javelin. Enhancement-type and manipulation-type Settings intertwined, concentrating terrifying power into the javelin.
But if it was Sanctuary Bonding, Jaehwan could do the same.
Sizzle.
Part of a Sanctuary manifested across Solitary Existence’s surface, and 「The World After the Fall」 appeared.
Jaehwan did not know whether this would work. Sanctuary Bonding was not a technique that succeeded easily.
Yet he did not feel as though it would fail.
The moment Turis’s javelin pierced through the Deep Sea, Russell, who had been endlessly releasing waves of World Force, spoke.
“Go.”
Dark Heaven had sensed the unusual World Pressure from afar and rushed over.
But it was already too late.
At Russell’s signal, Jaehwan’s Solitary Existence moved.
When Jaehwan had first met Russell in the 〈Metaverse〉, Jaehwan had cut through those waves and displayed a single technique.
This time, the waves were not his enemy.
「Path of the Wave」
Jaehwan’s Solitary Existence spewed fire.
Footnotes:
Chapter discussion